Newsom rolls back reopenings as COVID surges
The governor announced statewide restrictions, once again halting indoor dining and closing some businesses.
SACRAMENTO — California is largely closing again amid a spike in COVID-19 cases across the state, as Gov. Gavin Newsom announced statewide restrictions Monday to again halt all indoor dining and close bars, zoos and museums.
At the same time, most counties, including Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Orange and Riverside, will be forced to shutter gyms, houses of worship, hair salons, malls and other businesses under the new order, which is effective immediately and remains in effect indefinitely. In addition, offices with nonessential workers in those counties must close.
The move further pushes Californians back into their homes at a time when they’re typically enjoying summer vacations. The stricter measures to close gyms, churches and other services affect 29 counties that are among the state’s most populous, where 80% of California residents live.
“This virus is not going away anytime soon,” Newsom said Monday. “I hope all of us recognize that if we were still connected to some notion that, somehow, when it gets warm, it’s going to go away, or somehow, it’s going to take summer months or weekends off — this virus has done neither.”
Cases of COVID-19 in California and rates of hospitalizations have risen sharply in the last month as stores reopened and residents ventured back outside, albeit with restrictions to wear masks in public places.
The setback comes after the state said June 12 that dine-in restaurants, retail stores, bars, religious services and gyms could reopen with modifications in counties that met the state’s guidelines. Newsom said the move Monday to resurrect tough restrictions was a response to a rise in COVID-19
hospitalizations in the state.
“We’re seeing an increase in the spread of the virus, so that’s why it’s incumbent uppresident on all of us to recognize soberly that COVID-19 is not going away anytime soon until there is a vaccine or an effective therapy,” Newsom said Monday.
As of Monday, California had seen more than 333,000 cases of COVID-19 and more than 7,000 deaths. The state averaged 8,211 new cases a day of COVID-19 during the past week. The previous week, the average was 7,876.
Newsom has routinely highlighted the growing number of infections, even as the state moved forward with reopening, including giving the green light to nail salons, tattoo parlors and massage therapy facilities, which are some of the highest-risk sectors for transmissions. Last month, Newsom issued orders requiring Californians to wear face coverings in public or in high-risk settings.
Then, ahead of the Fourth of July holiday, Newsom set limits on indoor activities for counties hit by a spike in infections. Counties are placed on a watchlist after three days of rising hospitalization rates, increasing community transmission or declining hospital capacity.
There are now 29 counties on that watchlist, which, with Monday’s announcement, will have to close gyms, houses of worship, offices with nonessential workers, malls and salons. Kern County fell off the watch list Monday, while Placer, Sonoma, Yuba and Sutter counties were added.
Newsom said Monday that the stricter orders will likely soon be applied to Alameda County, given current trends. Counties are likely to come on and off the watchlist, he said, allowing the state to operate with a “dimmer switch” to modify restrictions as needed.
The latest order is creating a patchwork of closings and reopenings statewide, spreading confusion in some quarters. In the Bay Area, Santa Clara started reopening gyms and other services Monday but will have to close them Wednesday.
For businesses affected again by closures, the new orders are economically devastating and emotionally jarring, said Fiona Hutton, of an eponymous public affairs firm based in L.A. She said businesses can’t simply open and close with the switch of a button.
“Everyone is frustrated with the on/off switch in their personal and professional lives,” Hutton said.
Under the statewide order, all dine-in restaurants must close unless they seat patrons outdoors or offer takeout. Wineries and tasting rooms, movie theaters, card rooms, zoos, museums, bowling alleys and other family entertainment sites will be closed across California. Bars and breweries can continue to serve drinks outdoors if they’re accompanied by food.
Indoor protests are barred, but not outdoor ones. Hours after Newsom’s announcement, one group of anti-mask advocates posted plans to protest the restrictions this weekend outside the state Capitol.
The state’s public health department said the types of businesses targeted in Monday’s order have a higher risk of spreading the virus “because they promote mixing with others outside of one’s household.” Other sectors are included because they are not able to adhere to the state mask order; for example, while eating inside a restaurant or bar.
The new restrictions will remain in effect until the state’s public health officer, Dr. Sonia Angell, determines that it is appropriate to reverse course. The order, signed by Angell, also says “Californians should not travel significant distances and should stay close to home.” However, new travel restrictions are not in place.
“The decisions we make today will determine how COVID-19 impacts our communities and families tomorrow,” Angell said in a statement.
School districts will continue to determine whether to return to classrooms following summer break, a decision that has varied widely across California. On Monday, the Los Angeles Unified and San Diego Unified school districts announced that they would not reopen classrooms and will continue with online learning until further notice.